Starting a fire with Thermite.

**MoraBob** · 01-24-2013, 08:18 PM

Missed Cellis' contest by a day, decided to post as a fun thread. Enjoy!

Cellis' original competition.
http://bushcraftusa.com/forum/showth...re-Win-a-Prize

**Pat1973** · 01-24-2013, 08:23 PM

Wow thats impressive,i just learned something here,thanks to you!

**ewtoutdoors** · 01-24-2013, 08:47 PM

Never mind the contest, this was cool all on its own. Thanks

**cellis** · 01-24-2013, 09:09 PM

I was thinking two things that is the coolest thing ever and we need OSHA to chime on on this. But it looks like thermite is actually fairly safe to transport and the like? Just until to you light it then it becomes "Other Precautions: After ignition, the Thermit® reaction cannot be halted. Molten slag and steel are produced – stay clear when reaction"?

**MoraBob** · 01-24-2013, 09:43 PM

Originally Posted by cellis

I was thinking two things that is the coolest thing ever and we need OSHA to chime on on this. But it looks like thermite is actually fairly safe to transport and the like? Just until to you light it then it becomes "Other Precautions: After ignition, the Thermit® reaction cannot be halted. Molten slag and steel are produced – stay clear when reaction"?

Yeah, That's why I didn't use much. Maybe a 10th of a 20 fl oz water bottle worth. Gets the job done but scarey as all hell! I keep the ingredients separated until I want to use it cause then they are completely inert. Just aluminum and red rust. Couple facts. Thermite burns at around 4000 degrees Fahrenheit and can't be lit by anything under about 3000 degrees F so a magnesium strip is about your only option. It can melt through a car engine in about 30 seconds and is good for small welds if you don't have a machine or gear to do it otherwise.

**Howie** · 01-24-2013, 09:58 PM

heck yeah!

**redneck17** · 01-25-2013, 05:06 AM

talk about fire in a hurry.

**Shnick** · 01-25-2013, 07:28 AM

Definite "Man In The Creek" potential...

**cellis** · 01-25-2013, 07:48 AM

Don't worry I am one step ahead of you I saw this in the morning and have been figuring out the logistics of MITCD with it all day, not kidding lol. Seriously though is there a real reason to carry this in the bush? What would be the risks/benefits? Giant fire in seconds, I'm guessing even with wet wood an obvious benefit. All I know about it is tertiary and mostly from mythbusters. Where do you even buy it? Is it controlled? Too many questions...

**MoraBob** · 01-25-2013, 08:38 AM

Originally Posted by cellis

Don't worry I am one step ahead of you I saw this in the morning and have been figuring out the logistics of MITCD with it all day, not kidding lol. Seriously though is there a real reason to carry this in the bush? What would be the risks/benefits? Giant fire in seconds, I'm guessing even with wet wood an obvious benefit. All I know about it is tertiary and mostly from mythbusters. Where do you even buy it? Is it controlled? Too many questions...

MITCD?

No reason to carry it into the bush. This was done on my property. Risks are the reaction can't be stopped so if the fire gets out of hand all you can do is put out the other fires that sprout up until the reaction is complete. It spits and creates a ton of slag. It is relatively safe to use as long as you make sure the thermite is being used in an area free of other flammables and you stay the hell out of it's way. Can't buy it pre-made. (imagine the hazmat fees for shipping it. Yikes!!) You just purchase iron oxide and aluminum powder and mix in the proper portions. This fire was controlled pretty well. I used a digging stick to create a 2' wide moat of wet dirt around the fire. If you wanted to use it to controllable weld something you would first have to mix it with modelling clay so that you could shape it for the job you wanted it to do. The Magnesium is also REALLY finicky! If it touches anything other than air or thermite it just stops burning.